'Potential Unauthorized Deletion' of Secret Service Jan. 6 Texts Prompts Probe Request
BRETT WILKINS for Common Dreams
"If
it is determined that any text messages have been improperly deleted... then
the Secret Service must send NARA a report within 30 calendar days of the date
of this letter with a report documenting the deletion," U.S. Chief Records
Officer Laurence Brewer informed the
U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records officer, referring to the
National Archives and Records Administration.
"This
report must include a complete description of the records affected, a statement
of the exact circumstances surrounding the deletion of messages, a statement of
the safeguards established to prevent further loss of documentation, and
details of all agency actions taken to salvage, retrieve, or reconstruct the
records," he added.
Brewer's request followed news that the Secret Service will inform the congressional committee investigating the Capitol attack that it has found no new text messages related to the deadly insurrection. The House committee subpoenaed the Secret Service on Friday as part of the bipartisan panel's effort to recover text messages that were deleted shortly after oversight officials requested them.
The
National Archives request also comes after the DHS Office of Inspector General
(OIG)—which sought records related to the events of January 6—determined that
the Secret Service "erased text messages as part of a device replacement
program."
According to The
Washington Post:
The
Secret Service's text messages have become a new focal point of Congress'
investigation of January 6, as they could provide insight into the agency's
actions on the day of the insurrection and possibly those of Trump. A former
White House aide last month told the House select committee investigating the
assault on the Capitol that Trump was alerted by the Secret Service on the
morning of January 6 that his supporters were armed but insisted they be
allowed to enter his rally on the Ellipse with their weapons.
Trump
told multiple White House aides that he wanted to lead the crowd to the Capitol
and indicated his supporters were right to chant about hanging Vice President
Mike Pence, all pieces of evidence that help describe his state of mind and
what he wanted to happen at the Capitol that day.
Alleging
that the Secret Service "appears to have violated federal criminal law by
destroying text messages" around the time of the Capitol attack, the
advocacy group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) on
Monday filed a complaint asking
the U.S. Justice Department to launch "an immediate and full investigation
into whether Secret Service employees willfully destroyed federal
records."
"It
is extremely troubling to think that the Secret Service would destroy key
evidence in any investigation, let alone one that is central to getting answers
and accountability for the unprecedented attack on our democracy that occurred
on January 6, 2021," CREW chief counsel Donald Sherman said in
a statement.
"The
Federal Records Act requires that agencies like the Secret Service preserve
records so that there is a complete and accurate history of the government's
actions and decisions," he continued. "It is especially distressing
to see such behavior from a federal agency that had such critical duties during
the attack on the Capitol and had a front row seat to former President Trump's
behavior that day."
"The
Justice Department must take this apparent violation of federal law
seriously," Sherman added.
Secret
Service Chief of Communications Anthony Guglielmi—whose controversial career
includes stints as spokesperson for police departments in Baltimore and Chicago,
where he is accused of helping cover up the officer murder of
Black teenager Laquan McDonald—insisted in
a statement last week that the deletion of the texts was not malicious, and
that "none of the texts" sought by the OIG were erased.
Appearing
on ABC's "This Week" Sunday, January 6 committee member
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) said that
"we need all of the texts from the fifth and sixth of January."
"I
was shocked to hear that they didn't back up their data before they reset their
iPhones. That's crazy, and I don't know why that would be," she added.
"But we need to get this information to get the full picture."